The original lineup consisted of vocalist Jason Cruz, guitarists Jake Kiley and Rob Ramos, bassist Jim Cherry and drummer Adam Austin. After releasing a self-titled 7" record, they became one of the first bands to be signed to Fat Wreck Chords, the record label owned and operated by Fat Mike of the band NOFX. Austin left the band in 1992 and was replaced by Brad Morrison who also left the band and was replaced on drums by Jordan Burns, formerly of fellow Simi Valley natives Ten Foot Pole. Their first album, Another Day in Paradise, was released in May of 1994. Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues followed in 1996. In 1998 they released The Skinny Years...Before We Got Fat, a compilation album of their pre-Fat Wreck Chords material.
The band showed notable musical growth on their 1998 album Twisted by Design, which was both speedy and technical but also punk-based and with darker overtones. The album established a mixture of the fast, poppy sound the band had established with Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues but mixed it with more atonality and more abstract song structures. Bassist Jim Cherry left the band in 1999 and went on to play in Pulley and Zero Down, but died of heart failure in 2002. He was replaced by Chris Aiken, whose musical background had a strong impact on the 2000 album The Element of Sonic Defiance, which continued in the fast, melodic punk tradition of the band while introducing more hard rock and metal elements.
In 2002 the band released their fourth full-length album An American Paradox, their first release to appear in the Billboard Top 200. The initial production run contained a bonus song entitled "Don't Look Back". A video was filmed for the song "Cemetery" and was included on several punk rock video compilations. In 2003 they recorded and released a live album as part of the Fat Wreck Chords Live in a Dive series. Exile in Oblivion, was released in 2004, with a video filmed for the song "Analog." Strung Out released their sixth full-length album, Blackhawks Over Los Angeles on June 12, 2007.
In March 2009, Strung Out released a compilation of B-sides, demos, and covers called "Prototypes and Painkillers" with material from all eras of the band's history. Many of these tracks have been on various punk compilations and/or were included in their "Live in a Dive" recording.
On September 29, 2009, Strung Out Released a their 7th studio album titled Agents of the Underground.
Downtown
Strung Out Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I feel you comin' over me like broken glass
Fallin' down to cut my dreams.
Now if, these walls could only talk
They'd say no more than I could say here with a grin, a bottle and St. Anthony.
My thoughts are turnin' on me now
The pace with every footstep takes me farther down the dark end of the street that you call Home.
Confessions, stories, chances left behind
All show their faces in every stranger that I find.
There's somethin' you dnn't wanna know.
There's somethin' I don't wanna say.
Transmission on the radio, no direction no way home.
There's somethin' going wrong with us.
There's somethin' broken in our eyes.
Caress the emptiness and pour another drink, and wash away these memories, these dirty walls with gasoline.
The faces here don't have a thing to hide.
They tell the story of every broken heart survived.
There's somethin' you dnn't wanna know.
There's somethin' I don't wanna say.
And if we make it out alive, there's more to life than to survive!
There's somethin' going wrong with us.
There's somethin' broken in our eyes.
Tonight I feel you comin' over me.
Tonight I don't wanna feel a thing.
We never had a plan to go this far.
We never thought that I would get this dark.
There's somethin' you dnn't wanna know.
There's somethin' I don't wanna say.
Transmission on the radio, no direction no way home.
There's somethin' going wrong with us.
There's somethin' broken in our eyes.
"Downtown" by Strung Out is a song that tells a story of two lovers whose relationship has reached its breaking point. The lyrics describe a dark and gritty scene, where the singer is drowning in his pain and regrets. The opening lines, "Tonight, I feel you comin' down, I feel you comin' over me like broken glass, Fallin' down to cut my dreams" set the tone of the song, highlighting the pain and anguish that the singer is feeling. He feels like his dreams are being shattered, and he can't do anything to stop it.
The chorus, "There's somethin' going wrong with us, There's somethin' broken in our eyes" is a powerful set of lyrics that suggest that the relationship has run its course, and there's nothing that can be done to save it. The verses explore the relationship in more depth and show that the two lovers have drifted apart, leaving behind only memories and regrets. The singer feels lost and alone, struggling to find his way back to the life he used to know.
The bridge, "And if we make it out alive, there's more to life than to survive!" is a glimmer of hope in an otherwise dark song. It suggests that even though things are tough right now, there's still a chance for a better future. Overall, "Downtown" is a powerful and intense song that deals with themes of loss, regret, and the struggle to move on.
Line by Line Meaning
Tonight, I feel you comin' down
I sense your presence approaching me with a weight bearing down.
I feel you comin' over me like broken glass
You're enveloping me in a way that feels sharp and fragmented like shattered pieces of glass.
Fallin' down to cut my dreams.
Your influence is causing my dreams and aspirations to come crashing down and feel out of reach.
Now if, these walls could only talk
If the walls of this place I'm in could speak, they'd reveal no more than what I can say myself with a smirk, a bottle, and a relic associated with St. Anthony.
My thoughts are turnin' on me now
My own thoughts are starting to act against me, steering me further down the menacing path of the street that you consider home.
The pace with every footstep takes me farther down the dark end of the street that you call Home.
As I continue to walk, every step feels like it's leading me closer to the gloomy, ominous part of this street that you call your own.
Confessions, stories, chances left behind
The confessions, stories, and opportunities that went unseized are all manifesting themselves in the strangers I encounter.
All show their faces in every stranger that I find.
The people I come across all seem to carry remnants of what was abandoned by those in the past.
There's somethin' you don't wanna know.
There are details that I think you would rather remain ignorant about.
There's somethin' I don't wanna say.
And there are things that I am hesitant to express aloud.
Transmission on the radio, no direction no way home.
I hear the broadcast coming through the static, but it's not providing any guidance towards finding my way back home.
There's somethin' going wrong with us.
I'm sensing that there's something going awry between you and me.
There's somethin' broken in our eyes.
And I can discern that something within our connection is damaged or suffering.
Caress the emptiness and pour another drink, and wash away these memories, these dirty walls with gasoline.
I'm attempting to cope with the void by indulging in another beverage, and cleanse both my recollections and the grime of this space with flammable fuel.
The faces here don't have a thing to hide.
The people I'm surrounded by are transparent and honest in what they present to the world.
They tell the story of every broken heart survived.
Despite being scarred by emotional turmoil, these people show that it's possible to endure and live on.
And if we make it out alive, there's more to life than to survive!
If we manage to survive this ordeal, it's essential to remember that life can offer more than just mere survival.
Tonight I don't wanna feel a thing.
I'm feeling numb and wish to remain that way.
We never had a plan to go this far.
We never anticipated arriving at this position, but here we are nonetheless.
We never thought that I would get this dark.
Our situation has turned much bleaker than what we initially could have fathomed.
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing
Written by: Christopher Travis Jr Aiken, Jacob Ira Kiley, Jason Alexander Cruz, Jordan Lieberman, Robert J Ramos
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind